


In the Dark

by Spaceunicorn1300



Category: The Darkest Minds
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Black Betty, Chubs is kinda sarcastic, F/M, Fluff, Hurt Ruby, Injury, Kidnapping, Liam and Ruby are really cute, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:41:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22475005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spaceunicorn1300/pseuds/Spaceunicorn1300
Summary: When Ruby and the others run into some trouble she has to make a tough decision to save her friends.
Relationships: Ruby Daly/Liam Stewart
Comments: 1
Kudos: 49





	In the Dark

**Author's Note:**

> I got into this fandom pretty recently and as soon as I finished the first book the wheels in my brain were turning as I thought of all the fan fiction I could write. I hope you like this because this is my first work for this fandom. Let me know what you think and make sure to leave a comment, I love to get feedback. Enjoy! :)

As much as I loved Black Betty, it was hard to sleep in her during the winter. Chubs refused to let us turn up the heat and would go into a lecture about saving fuel if one of us even looked at the knob, although sometimes Lee would do it anyway with a wink in my direction. Night was the hardest because it seemed like the already low temperatures would drop into the inhospitable frozen wasteland range. 

I lay there under a blanket trying to keep my teeth from chattering so loud and watching my breath fog up the air. I jumped out of my skin when I felt a slightly warmer hand circle one of mine. Lee was facing me with that silly grin on his face. 

“You’re freezing Darlin’.” He whispered. He brought his face closer and blew some warmth into my hand. “Maybe I could sneak up to the front seat and turn on the heat for a little bit.” I shook my head. 

“Chubs would have a cow. And besides, I don’t think you could get up if you wanted to.” Zu was sleeping soundly curled up against his stomach. Her head was buried in his chest and one of her pink gloved hands clutching his shirt. He chuckled, 

“Well, at least one of us is comfortable.” We laughed quietly trying not to wake up the others when a snapping twig made us both freeze. Lee’s face dropped and he craned his neck to try and hear what was going on. “It’s probably nothing.” he reassured. 

“Do you really believe that?” I asked. It was silent for a moment besides the sounds of someone or something was making. It was as if they were trying to sneak around, but failing miserably. He shook his head, 

“I’ll go check it out.”

“No.” I insisted. I wasn’t going to let him pull that self sacrificial bull again. “I’m coming too.”

“No way.” 

“Yes way.” I argued, sitting up. “You may be able to move things with your mind, but I was the one who took down Lady Jane, you have to let me help you.” He sighed. 

“Alright, fine. Help me move Zu.” We rolled her over slowly and waited until she latched onto a a snoozing Chubs. Liam slid open the door quietly and helped me to the ground. If we thought it was cold inside the van outside was worse. My fingers went numb in seconds and I wrapped my arms around myself to try to contain my shivering. 

We stood there for ages watching our breath puff out into the night while we waited to see if the threat would reveal itself or we would need to go looking for it. Lee took a step, but the sound of a gun cocking into place made us both stop in our tracks. It happened again and again, too many times. 

Liam threw his hands up in surrender and looked back at me to do the same. Ten PSFs stepped out from the trees of the clearing we had been sleeping in. 

“We got ‘em.” One of the men said into some kind of a communication device. I felt myself starting to panic. I couldn’t let them take Liam, or Chubs, or little Zu. I could picture their faces as they were taken into the camps one by one. Lee would have his head bowed, face drawn in a grimace as he let the guilt of not being able to protect his friends flood over until it drowned him. Chubs would be yelling out about the conditions and talk about some obscure disease that we were bound to catch if they sent us back to that awful place. Zu would stay silent, the tears would stream down her face as she shook like a leaf. I couldn’t let that happen, they had worked so hard to escape, they were trying to find the Slip Kid, it was their dream. I had to protect it at all costs. I wouldn’t be able to control the guards like I had been able to with Lady Jane. There were too many of them and by the time that I would succeed there would be a bullet in my brain. They started towards Liam when an idea popped into my brain.

“I’m an orange.” I blurted as they started to restrain him. As soon as the words left my mouth their eyes were on me, just like I’d planned. 

“Ruby, no.” Lee hissed his eyes sad. 

“You can have me, but you have to leave the others behind.” The PSFs stood still, frozen in their tasks as they considered my offer. I refused to look at Liam. I knew if I saw the devastated look in his eyes I wouldn’t be able to go. Finally after an eternity they released Lee, pushing him down in the frozen dirt for good measure. Before I knew it I was surrounded by PSFs. They grabbed my arms and locked them in heavy metal cuffs, after doing the same to my feet they fit a black muzzle over my mouth and started to drag me away. 

I couldn’t shout out to Liam, couldn’t tell him that I would be ok or that he had to remember to take good care of Zu, although I knew he would do that anyway. I don’t know what made me do it, but I glanced back at him one last time and promptly remembered why that was such a bad idea. He was laying there on the ground watching me with his mouth dropped open in shock. If he was at all cold he didn’t show it and looked like he could lay there for hours. They took me to a van and I felt the tears slip down my cheeks as sobs built in my throat. 

I was strapped to a bed in the back with two guards sitting in seats on either side of me. The whole setup reminded me of an ambulance and I wondered how long they knew about us, if they had followed the van to out little makeshift camping spot and waited until they knew that we were asleep before grabbing us one by one. People were talking, but I was too busy crying to notice. 

I felt as if my heart had been stomped on and then ripped in two. I had made my choice and I would do it again to keep the others safe, but I was really going back. It was a thought that was almost too hard to think about, so I tried not to. One of the PSFs came to my side with a syringe filled with clear liquid. I tried to move away but the restraint had no give and before I knew what was happening there was a small prick in my arm as the contents were injected into my bloodstream. My breath came out in sharp gasps as I tried to control the raging tidal wave of fear and panic that overcame me. The officer backed away with a smirk on his face.

“See? Now you don’t have to worry about her giving you much trouble. Let’s get moving before her little friend gets any ideas.” The vehicle lurched and I lay my head back suddenly feeling tired. My vision blurred and I felt like I was helplessly rocking in a boat at sea. Nausea rose in my stomach, but I pushed it down. Something told me that throwing up with a muzzle on my face was not going to be a pleasant experience. I choked and gasped and cried and besides the crackle of walkie talkies it was the only sound that could be heard. I faded in and out of consciousness and had no real idea how much time had passed, but the van suddenly lurching forward temporarily shook me out of whatever daze I was in.

I moved with it making the restraints tug painfully on my wrists and ankles. The PSFs slid in their seats, cursing and grumbling as they rightened themselves. The ride smoothed out for a little bit before it happened again a little harder. I gritted my teeth against the sharp pull of the restraints and the spinning in my head from the mysterious drug in my system. This time there was no break, no stopping to smooth everything over and get back on schedule. 

This time the van flipped, rolling over and over. I didn’t have a way to protect myself with my hands tied down like they were so I squeezed my eyes shut tights and felt things slam into my body, getting bruises and cuts. When it finally stopped I took as good a breath as I could through the muzzle and before long they were back to being fast and shallow as I let fear take over again. I was so trapped in my own head that I barely noticed the door flying open or the PSFs in the back with me being dragged out. It was only when I was being removed from the wreckage that I began to twist and squirm, keeping my eyes shut. I felt the freezing air hit my face but I barely registered it. 

“See Chubs, I told you that would work.” 

“Wonderful, does that mean I can go back to bed?” I could hear a warm laugh ring out and it made my heart melt a little bit.

“Ruby, are you ok?” Even though I wanted to, I couldn’t talk and nodding my head made me want to pass out so I lay there keeping my eyes closed tight. A soft hand gently turned my face, but I didn’t react even though I wanted to so bad. 

“Geez Darlin’ what did they do to you?” I knew that voice, sometimes better than my own parents. “Chubs get this thing off of her face.” Liam’s tone was sharp and dangerous and I had never heard it go that way. He brushed his fingers over the material that covered my mouth. 

“Alright, let me see if I can get this.” Chubs directed a knife to one of the straps that was pulled around my face as he gently cut it away. “There we go.” I felt relief wash over me as I let out a shuddering breath I didn’t know I had been holding. 

“Ruby please look at me , say something, please.” Lee’s voice almost broke my heart as he pleaded. 

I peeled my eyelids open and said shakily, “L-Lee.” 

“She speaks.” Chubs mumbled as Liam brushed my dark hair away from my face. 

“There’s my girl.” He said. 

“Can we please go now? I would really hate to get hypothermia watching you two have a moment.” Liam laughed and grabbed my arm pulling me up beside him. As soon as I was on my feet the ground seemed to sway and jump. I tilted right into Lee’s arms and he held me protectively to his chest.

“Drugs or something. The ground is all weird now.” I managed to mumble. Liam chuckled and scooped me up like it was nothing. 

“Well then I guess it’s a good thing we aren’t going to the Skip Kid on foot, you would put us out a night or two. Don’t worry, we’ll just get you back to the van and let you sleep it off.” The rest of the short walk to Betty was in silence. When we finally arrived Chubs slid open the door quieting Zu and he frantic russling. 

I was lifted up into the van and lain down across the blankets that littered the floor. Lee was there in an instant, guising me until I was laying against him and finding the fluffiest blanket to wrap around the both of us. He used a hand to wipe the tears from my face and pushing the hair back from my head. Zu crawled over to where we were laying and curled up in a ball.

“She was pretty shaken up when I told them what happened.” He explained. I felt guilt bubble up in my chest as I watched her sniffle and shake. I shouldn’t have pulled a stunt like that, but all I had been thinking about was Liam, Chubs, and Zu getting dragged away. “Hey, don’t do that to yourself.” he said as if reading my mind. He tilted my head up to look at him. “Ruby, you saved all of us tonight. Am I happy that they took you? No, but if you hadn't then we would all be in trouble.” 

I nodded and he kissed the top of my head pulling me closer. I felt safe laying on his chest with his arms wrapped around me. I could hear his heart pounding steadily, proof he was alive and here with me. 

“Go to sleep Darlin’, I’ll be right here.” He reassured me. That was all I needed to let my eyes close as I dropped off.

**Author's Note:**

> It took a painfully long time to write and edit this thing. I pretty much worked it over and over until I got to a point where I was happy with it. I don’t have a whole ton of ideas for this fandom so if you guys have any leave a comment letting me know. See ya later :)


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